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BY JOHN HARCLAV, U.D. PUBLISHED BY REQUEST. ^1^ M 'I' (> Jl O N T () : PIMNTKU BY L(»VELL AND (^ll^SoX. 18<;:5.. THE THRONE ESTABLISHED BY RIGHTEOUSNESS. A DISCOURSE f BSACHRD IK ST. ANDRKW'S CHURCH. TORONTO. Ov IHB 24TH 0? Mat. 1863, BEING THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE BIRTH-DAY OF HER MOST GRACIOUS MAJESTY QUEEN VICTORIA. BY JOHN BARCLAY, D.D. PUBLISHED BY REQUEST. TORONTO : PRINTED BY LOVELL AND GIBSON. 1863. f DISCOURSE. i Proverbs xvi. 12 : ** The throne is established by righteousness.** So spake the * wise man ' in one of those short but comprehensive utterances in which he pre- sented, with such force and clearness, so many important truths for the instruction and guid- ance of his fellow-men. Himself the occupant of a throne, in his mouth the text was peculiarly appropriate. Versed, as he was, in the duties pertaining to the high station of a ruler over others — possessing the riches and honours of royal state in no small measure — knowing well the weighty responsibilities of a position so ex- alted among men — not ignorant of its perils and temptations — wisely judging as to what was, and what was not, inherent in the emblems and ho- nours of royalty; — Solomon may well be re- garded as -peaking with authority, because with a personal knowledge of the subject, when he declared that "the throne is esttblished by righteousness." Not only is this the utterance of wisdom in the mouth of the wisest of men, but it is also the declaration of wisdom directed and regulated by the Spirit of God-^hy whose inspiration the sentiment was recorded for the admonition of mankind in all succeeding ages of the world. The text I take to rest on the general prin- ciple that the possession of power or prominence bears with it corresponding responsibility as to the influence it diflPuses, and that an indispens- able element of true greatness is goodness, — Bighteousness, which adds dignity to any sta- tion, whether high or liumble — gives stability to thrones when they rest on it — and is, after all, the best ornament of rank and the truest of kingly graces. And if it be that theme, it may not be an inappropriate subject of discourse this day, in which we hail the return of the anniver- sary of the birth-day of the honoured Sovereign of this great empire, — v, hich under her benign sway has been so signally blessed by Him oj whom "kings reign and princes decree justice." The representative of a long line of monarchs, who, by the divine favour, have successively pre- sided over the varying fortunes of a people that has long occupied a foremost place among the by )> nations, — the honours of a long line of royal ancestry have never been more worthily borne, for the happiness of her people or for the good of the world at large. To no small extent is it owing to the fact of the throne being "estab- lished by righteousness,*' that the British sceptre is so gracefully swayed ; and because the Royal Lady to whom we owe allegiance has added to her high ancestral honours the lustre of many princely virtues and Christian graces. The outward pomp and circumstance of regal *^hority may be the features which stand out prominently to the eye that takes a super- . view of the thrones and sceptres and diadems of earthly dominion. But the glory of true royal dignitj rests on something greater and better than these. If royal honours fall on the unjust and cruel despot, who usurps an authority in whose exercise he seeks only the indulgence of his own passions ; and who deals out wrongs on trembling subjects, crouching in abject wretchedness beneath his unjust and cruel sway : — ^if power be possessed that it may be abu ed and made the instrument of public outrage and of private wrongs, — it may be in tlie hands of King or Emperor, President or Governor ; what- ever be the name or form in which the supreme civil authority is vested, — if there be awanting W'^mt 6 the moral inf^redient of rectitude which renders power " a terror to evil-doers and the praise of such as do well," it lacks the chief eiomcnt of stability and of excellence whereby it should be distinguished. It ma^, dazzle the eye, and draw forth the admiration, of inconsiderate observers to gaze, in stupid wonder, ou the mere external glare and glitter of Royalty, though destitute of the higher element of moral rectitude that gives it solidity and worth. But if constitutional liberty have no place in the laws that govern, nor be res- pected by the hands that administer public affairs —if wickedness triumph in high places, and right- eousness be there despised, — what woes await a nation with the forms of law and the fountain of power and influence thus made the source of wrong! It is righteousness alone that is the true support and sifeguard of nations; righte- ousness both oil the throne and around the throne, and extending through all ranks of the commonwealth ; righteousness moulding and founding the constitution ; righteousness making and, when needful, amending the laws ; right- eousness dispensing justice among the people, and administering the affairs of th(.' body politic; righteousness ever seeking, and labouring to se- cure, the triumph of truth and godliness among men! Look upwards to that liighest of all thrones — the Tlirone on which He sits who in divine Majesty rules in the armi(\s of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth. The hand that holds the Heavenly sceptre wields all the resources of omnipotence ; and in comparison with that might i\y"L majesty which surround the throne of God, how puny are all the sceptres of the princes and potentates of the earth ! In presence of the sceptre of Uim who ruleth over all, the power and glory of the nations are hut vanity! Yet even of God's throne it must he said — reverently be it spoken, but unequivocally may it be de- clared — that even it has its limits ; that there is a region of evil and injustice into which it does not and cannot enter, to be a partaker in wrong- doing. For its highest glory is that ** a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of God's king- dom." That His power is directed in its exercise by a righteousness that never swerves from what is holy, and just, and good. Doubtless it is true of Jehovah, the Governor of the nations, that what it pleaselh him he hath done. But then it pleascth Him ever to work only righteousness. That is an element of His very being — an attri- bute from which He can never be separated. The most terrible idea, indeed, that can be formed of a being wielding omnipotence is, that 8 he may be exercising power dissociated from righteousness — power working out only evil ; or to whom good and evil are alike indifferent. It is the idea that is embodied to a large extent in the Evil-one, who goeth about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. Well is it for weak and fallible man that it is not omnipotence that is allied to satanic devices of evil — ^that there is a stronger than this " strongman armed " to thwart his evil purposes, and to deliver men from his snares ; and that against the cause of truth and righteousness the gates of hell shall not prevail. What gives stability to the throne of God, and renders it a blessing to the universe — yea the source of all blessings to the creatures of His hand — is, that it is a throne founded on right- eousness ; tliat though " clouds and darkness be round about that throne, justice and judgment are the habitation thereof." It is to this very element of righteousness, which renders the throne of God so glorious, that men are called to trust, as giving the truest dignity to earthly thrones and dominions, in that measure in which the human may copy the divine. In its due manner and in such degree as may be reached by human endeavour, is it said to the children of men, '* Let the throne be established ^ , 5 d from ivil; or snt. It ttent in ng lion 3 it for Ipoteuce l—that wmed " er men ause of 11 shall od, and ea the of His Tight- ness be igment usness, [orious, ! truest in that divine, mav be to the blished by righteousness." Let this be the ornament {brightest and best among the gems sparkling in the Crown that graces the Monarch's head, iiet this be the bond that unites prince and peo- ^?3e— ruler and ruled. Let this be the common aim to which are consecrated the hopes, the efforts, the prayers of all, that the Throne be established by righteousness— ^Aa^ "righteous- ness which alone exalteth a nation," — to the discouragement and exclusion of "sin which is ^e ruin of any people.*' To a result like this the efforts of all must contribute. Eighteous- ;aess must have its triumph over every form of iniquity and evil ; not in lordly halls only, but in lowly abodes; not only in the royal palace, but ^aJso in the humblest cottage in the land. It must pervade the entire mass of the people, to make the nation what it ought to be. This is the support which communities must give to the supreme Magistrate, that he may be **the minister of God for good;" and that this good may be commensurate to the wants of the nation, thus blessed with righteousness, both in high and low. Think you, that for subjects to exact righteousness the most exten- sive and unswerving from the occupant of the throne, and yet to manifest no righteousness on their own part, and to cherish no desire to culti- 10 );i i vate it in their own breasts, can ever be a true response to the demand of the text ? Censorious enough men can sometimes be with reference to the defects, real or supposed, of princes and those in lofty stations; and yet how often does un- righteousness triumph in their own breasts,- — in the malice, and wrath, and evil-speaking — in the uncharitableness and wrong-doing with which themselves are chargeable ! There must be the nether as well as the upper sources of tliis stability of thrones ; the virtues of the people as well as of the sovereign ; the in- tegrity of the community as well as the upright- ness of their rulers. Good indeed it is to seek and pray that the throne may ever be established by righteousness adorning the head that wears the Crown. Happy the people who can rejoice over the fultilment of hopes and wishes that contem- plate a result like this ! So that from the high- est seat of authority in the land, a healthful example of reverence for goodness, and of a re- gard for uprightness, may go forth, with many lessons to influence others in the rvay of righte- ousness. But chiefly to be valued is the general diffusion of high-toned, moral, and Christian in- tegrity, which, leavening the entire community, may preserve the nation from degradation and decay. As a living buttress to the throne, to 11 a true sorious snce to i those es un- ts, — in -in the which upper i^irtues the in- )right- ) seek )lished wears ;e over ntem- high- ilthful a re- many ighte- eneral an in- anity, a and le, to complete and maintain in symmetry and beauty the noble structure of national greatness, an up- right nnd virtuous people arc the source of a nation's strength. And when the graces which adorn the throne are reflected and multiplied in the response that comes largely from the people to the claims of righteousness, happy is that nation which is in such a state : It is established hy its righteousness. Thus it is that we derive a striking testimony to the value of true Religion, which is to us the standard and teacher of righteousness. Why should the simple announcements uttered by Jesus, as the great Teacher sent from God, ba of such lasting importance that they should con- tinue to this hour to be the great theme of the Pulpit, to which all classes of mankind are called to give heed, as unto things worthy of ail accep- tation ? Why should the words that arrested the ear of the common people in the temple at Jeru- salem, and in other places of public resort, as thoy fell in persuasive utterance from His lips eighteen centuries ago, be still so fitting subject of discourse ? Why should truths spoken in the wilderness of Judea, in the villages of Galilee, by the waysides of Samaria, by Jordan's banks, or on Gennesarefs busy shores, be still worthy to be re-echoed from land to land, and to reach even 12 the distant islands of the sea ? Why should the holy musings of that mysterious dweller in Patmos' lonely isle— who told of visions of un- utterable things— be of so vast importance to us even now as they are tending on towards their elucidation and fulfilment? Why should the earnest pleadings of a Peter, the bold and lofty reasonings of a Paul, or the affectionate sayings of "the disciple whom Jesus loved," be still as full of instruction, of hope, and of blessings to the children of men, as when from Apostolic lips they were first spoken in vindication of the gospel of Jesus Christ ? Why ! but just because truth is eternal; and the Divine truths thus recorded carry with them claims, and privileges, and bless- ings that are fitted to exalt our race to the true dignity of their restored birth-right of sons of God. So that to every one it may be said, Despise not these sayings of Christ and his Apostles ; neglect not those writings of Mo>»e8 and the prophets. They may be old truths, hut in their hoary antiquity they retain their fresh- mess, and are indued with a vitality that can never die. Fragrant with the sweets that are wafted from the Paradise whence they have eome, they flourish still with blossoms of hope and with full crops of blessings for the children of men, that whosoever will may pluck of the fruit of the I i' 1 I )uld the jller in of un- 36 to us is their old the id lofty sayings still as } to the [)s they spel of ^uth is corded bless- e true ons of laid, — id his MoHes s, hut fresh- t can it are come, I with men, )fthe 13 tree of life, and eat for the nourishment of his soul. And now, as at the first, you are exhorted' to '' have your fruit unto holiness and the end everlasting life." —« Continue steadfast in the apostles doctrine."— "Be ye followers of Christ as dear children, and walk in love."—" Bun with patience the race set before you."— Live godly in Christ Jesus, " for godliness hath promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come." The theory of a nation prosperous and stable, implies a concord of sentiment and harmony of effort for the general good, by each individual laying hold of that integrity, and promoting in his own procedure, and in the sphere in which he moves, that righteousness by which nations are exalted. More prominent and more evident in stations of influence may be the opportunity of thus advancing the public good ; but there is no station, however humble, from which the ob- ligation to consult it is excluded. And the great principle laid down in the text, as fitted to secure that end, is a principle of universal application. Wherever there are minds to devise and hands to do ; wherever thought and action can be deve- loped and devoted to practical ends,— let it be in the direction of righteousness. Let righteous motives influence all, and righteous aims animate all ; and righteous means be ever employed, by i 14 character; and C'^7*'°r^«--«o„a, ttat the nation tri„2h5 ?"'"'''• ^*'"« « ''' «. even for that end "tt "T'"' '" ^*'' '"'ie^ and gladdens with it, ^^^ ^ ^'^''^^ ««»■ o-^y sons of toil; JZt. T? '^"^"'"^^ the ^^^o-^es a natioL's safl f """^ P^^^^''*'^ ^-lling.i^theperson^ttestrt''-"'" ^^•'^ there comes an influence tllT °«<="Pants, *» tie upholding J"^^*f,^*'">''«butes its part 'If ^-J byrighteousne *^ nH,*^"* "^ -tab- "l^. whatever be their al J'?. ^^''"" ''''' °» perpetuate the claims If ^'. , '' *° ^^^''^d ^^d ^I'^dinobe.in/rr "'>t-us„ess. The ''""rinff his father aLb '"^ ^''^ ^^''-'•o- .^'f commandment :L;r''-> -i*eh is t^ - ''-gin, up hi., Chi Idren'rr '' ''' ^^''-t' admonition of the Lord " ""''"''^ «»" •"•edient to his master 1 . '''''"*' '" ''eing -gienessofheartrstrri^?^ '*» exacting only what T- ! '' ' *''" «>»«ter. f»--gthatij;'i;x:."''"'»"''*«°-'- tJ"^* God is no respecter Oft " '" '"»^«''' «»1 J' -^te' of persons: The artizan. 15 in his workshop, applying his skill to the intri- cate objects of his handicraft, and yet content with the just reward of his honest labour : The merchant at his desk, or from the marts of trade sending forth the streams of commerce to distant shores, and drawing thence the golden returns which contribute to the nation^s wealth ; yet let- ting righteousness regulate all his operations, so that integrity and honourable dealing may be seen to distinguish his every enterprise-in the honesty of purpose with which he applies himself to his vocation, he is contributing his share to uphold the national character and to maintain the public probity : and thus he iielps even to " establish the throne by righteousness." So the politician, who, throwing aside mere personal ends, seeks from high and honourable motives the advancement of the public interests : Th« legislator, who takes an honest part in wisely framing the laws by which the community are restrained from wrong-doing, and directed and protected in their rights : The statesman, who, in his more onerous and responsible official posi- tion, holds the helm of public affairs and steers the ship of State, through storm or calm as they come, but ever keeping his eye on righteousness as on a compass, to guide him in his course of far-seeing aims and of wise and upright efforts 16 for the public good :~these, in their varied spheres of action, in seeking the triumph of truth and right, are in reality labouring in their several departments for the advancement of in- terests that tell for good on the general pros- perity, and all combine to secure the great ob- ject set forth in the text, of " establishing the throne by righteousness." So when justice is impartially dispensed to rich and poor alike, the highest interests of nations are upheld, and their true dignity and honour promoted. And the up- right judge, who intelligently and impartially administers the laws, impelled thereto by a high regard for the maintenance of right and justice; and who, in bearing the "sword of justice," shrinks not from rebuking fraud and punishing wrong,— he too takes his part, and that no unim- portant part, in the great duty of " establishing the throne by righteousness." To be concerned in any way in upholding an upright throne— in defending and perpetuating the blessings of true liberty, guarded by the bul- wark of constitutional freedo^v^, is, of all tem- poral obligations, a duty the most sacred— a privilege the most valuable and honoured among men. It is to do homage to eternal truth ! It is to uphold by righteousness the embodiment of +ix«. ■^r^.TTTiy.r, Virvprkiiv f*r\f\ inflnfinpfi of the nation w for good and valuc'ible ends ! It is to honour God, by whom kings reign ; and to walk in the way which religion jjoints out. So, too, to defend — though it be amid toils and perils, danger and death on tiie tented field — the throne thus es- tablished by rigliteousness ; to guard with jea- lous care the national honour w hen assailed by toes however numerous; to rush to tiie rescue of interests of country and of race, for vvliich it is honourable to suffer and glorious to die ; — this is what cons(x^rates the profession of arms to noble objects, and covers the warrior with im- mortal fame. If that light of freedom which burns so l)rightly on the altar of British liberty, and which has so long shone forth as a beacon to guide the nations in their onward progress to- wards what is great and free, were now to be extinguished through the unfaithfulness of its guardians or the pusillanimity of its defenders, whither should men turn for a substitute ! Not to spurious imitators, who invoke the sacred name of Liberty, but on the first temptation re- pudiate her safeguards, and employ or embrace the manacles of incipient tyranny ! Rather, in such a case, let it be to the memory of a past renown, whence there may be drawn the inspira- tion of departed glories. But as it is, in the full eniovment of such a m-ultitude of national bless- is ings, let us acknowledge what is due to those of former times, w^ho sow^ed that we might reap so rich a harvest of benefits as now, by the divine favour, encompass us as a people. And let us honour the heroes of our fatherland, who in times of peril were true to their country, and guarded the shrine of her liberties with intrepid breasts and strong right arms ; and who, having defended her in times of trial with their lives, have handed down to us tjje goodly heritage of freedom, w^hich, while the nation lasts, never may proud despot arise to subvert nor libertine to destroy ! Fortunate indeed it is when it is really in sup- port of a throne resting on righteousness that the efforts of noble defenders are invoked. Let our sympathies ever surround such a patrimony, and our efforts be ever responsive to the call that summons us to its defence in the hour of need — that so great a heritage of blessings may ever be ours to hand down in its integrity to the genera- tions that are to follow. Even here, at this dis- tance from the centre and seat of the national authority, we may take our part in upholding the throne, by the faithful discharge of all the duties, sacred and civil, that devolve upon us. In our own sphere we can, as a people, dip our torch m the sacred fire that fflows in the t,PTYir»lft of c - — r — — British freedom ; and if we think we can so trim the lamp of liberty as to cause it to give forth even a brighter radiance in this new land, so be it. But let us ever, as our first care, maintain with fidelity that righteousness on which our Queen's throne rests, and by which civil authority is upheld, for the security of the State and the good of the people at large. A throne established by righteousness ! Surely if ever amid the imperfections of earth this has been presented to the eyes of men, it has been in unwonted measure b;^ that Iloyal Lady whose womanly virtues have shed a brighter lustre on the throne than mere rank could give. It is an instructive and a worthy homage which righte- ousness commands as its due, when, in prefer- ence even to royal dignity, it is the personal ex- cellences of our good Queen that draw the ad- miration of other nations, w^ho see in her queenly virtues a glory which crowns all other glories of her prosperous and happy reign. For those excellences whic stamp the British constitution as the palladium of true liberty — a safeguard to her own people in their peaceful homes, and a model to other nations which seek to be great and free — credit may not be due to the reigning monarch ; for it was to the throne of a free empire, already safe in its liberties, that 20 the present Sovereign of Great Britain succeeded. But has not the result proved that she brought to the task of governing a tree people those qualities which, under the workings of* a free constitution, have helped to develope an(i consoli- date that liberty, and, by the divine blessing, keep them great and free. Was it nothing in the interest of good government — Avas it nothing in the interest of Monarchy itself, that when, a few years ago, in other lands, thrones were shaking and sovereigns there were who by their misrule had brought kingdoms and crowns into peril, the world could look to one Royal pc^rsonage who con- tinued to reign in the affections of her people, because mainly of the personal virtues that dis- tinguished her ! And while she gracefully Avore iier ancestral honours as a Queen, bearing consti- tutional rule over her people, she was unostenta- tiously, — almost unconsciously, — presenting to that people the example of a woman faithfully discharging the duties of daily personal life— as a wife, a mc'.her, a friend whose human sympa- thies have led her into such close contact Avith her people. Who can think of that pure Court over which our good Queen has, for a quarter of a century, presided— of tiiat happy family she is training in the paths of virtue— of that humble bearing she hns sbpwn \y\ iioi« i>i+r^v'^r>T,^o« .."+k ( 21 her people- of her synipiithy with them in their sorrows— of her interest in their welfare— of her desire and of her efforts for their good ;— who, I say, ean think of tlie personal claims of such a Queen to the veneration of her people, and not thank God that on so higli a platform there should be presented such an example for the good of her people and for the benefit of the world at large ? Who can thi. ^ of the spectacle thus exhibited of womanly excellence, and fail to see tliat one sovereign at least there is— and that our own— who seeks to establish her t'U'one by righteousness I Hence when a first and sore afHiction met her in the midst of her high duties, and death en- tered th(^ royal palace, depriving her of the pres- ence and counsel of a Prince Consort who had so worthily aided '.er in iier liigh functions as ruler in the land, while the nation mourned over the pul)lic calamity, the full t de of the people^s spontaneous sympathy was poured on their widowed Queen. And we, wlio have rejoiced in the prosperity so good a Queen has been instru- mental in S('eunng; who have felt her griefs as if our own, and who are persuaded of the value of so high an (Example of what is lovely and of good report, may well, as a people thus' blessed, be called this day to acknowledge how great has 22 been the contribution towards the supremacy of goodness in high places, which has been laid by the hands of Queen Victoria on the altar of her country's fame. And w^ell may it be our most fervent prayer for that empire to which we glory to belong, that Britain's throne may ever " be established by righteousness !" In the promotion of such an object as that of having the throne resting on righteousness, even the humblest individual amonsjst us mav share. He may have had nothing to do with Courts or Cabinets : neither the ability nor the opportunity mav have been his of influencinj? bv his advice the national Counsels : the face of his Sovereign he may never have seen : in his oAvn retired neighbourhood he may be all but entirely igno- rant of what is happening in the higher depart- ments of State ; — but if in that lowly sphere in which he moves he has been adorning the doc- trines of God his Saviour — if he has been thus walking humbly with his God ; then, in thus pre- senting to other lovvly observers the little history of an unobtrusive life, regulated by the fear of the Lord Avhich is the beginning of AA'isdom, he has been helping to lay broader and deeper tlie foundations of public virtue on which an upright throne may rest. Whatever be the station a man occupies, he may take part in this great ':» duty which he owes to Ms country and to his race. Each has a sphere wherein he may labour for the public good. Only let true Religion be the ruling principle that animates you, and the fear of God be ever cherished in your hearts : let all your aims be directed by righteousness, and all your efforts be towards its advancement; and thus you wm do your part for the attainment of the common end-of asserting the supremacy of righteousness over all ranks and orders of men in the State. In the retirement of his own little circle of operi,tions, eacli one may think that smaU must be the influence that can flow from his indivi- dual aims and efforts-that a righteous action, a self-denying deed done by him, can be but as a drop m the groat ocean, to be overwhelmed in the mighty aggregate of the world's proceedings and thus lost for over as to any share it can have m developing the national character or main- taining the national integrity. But was it not of sucli A ,rkers of righteousnoss-humble foUowers of the great Exemplar-that the commendation was pronounced, « Ye are the salt of the earth ?» And of many a humble Christian, but little known beyond his own home-circle, it may be said that, even for the good of his Age and Country, he has not been righteous in vain— that his unobtrusive piety survives in the recollection 24 of some who were influenced for good by the living example of his faith and patience, and who cherisli the remembrance of his excellences when he has gone to his reward, so that " being dead he yet speaketh." Does not a blessed in- fluence surround those who love righteousness and seek its promotion ? They are fellow- workers with the great and good of other days, who, in the various departments of Christian effort, have laboured for the spread of truth and godliness among men. In thus letting your light so shine as to glorify your Father in heaven, you shall in your own sphere help to extend the reign of righteousness and to promote the cause of Christ around you ; and by the deeds of Christian bene- volence to which you a^e impelled by the prin- ciples and precepts of the Gospel, you shall thus, as far at least as your influence and example extend, benefit for time and eternity the com- munity to which you ])elong. Let the diffusive nature of the Christian religion have thus full and fair play, and from all ranks in the social scale let the example of a healthy piety come with its happy influences for good, and what a spectacle would then be presented ! Righteous- ness exalting the nation higher than earthly glory could do, — "its peace flowing as a river, its righteousness as the waves of the sea." m